Learning with computers

Rahul Janpandit further says, quot;I like playing games like Mortal Kombat.quot; But does having a computer at home mean nothing but games? Gaurav Desai and Sachin Athalye, students of Standard VIII disagree,quot;We enjoy using the Encarta encyclopedia and the Eyewitness Series. They are as popular as any game around.quot; Good guys, way to go! Talking to other students, it becomes apparent that edutainment8217; is as popular as pure entertainment.

A quick round of the shops reveals nothing new. The most popular buys are games as well as the edutainment, or education based CDs. There are CDs for all kids, from ages 4 onwards! Some of them are to be used in conjunction with school studies like the Jump Start series, which has a range for all kids at the primary school level. The Encarta Encyclopedia is also very popular with the children.

You can also find games which inform and educate like the excellent Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?8217; which is a detective game that needs the student to absorb information about world history and geography in order to catch the spies.

Of course,just games are equally popular. Some of them are harmless like the popular Cricket World Cup or Motor Racer and Flight Simulator. However, what is disturbing is the popularity of games like Mortal Kombat and Doom-2, which are violent games involving blood and gore. Now, why would you guys want to play such games? These games are for 18 year-olds, but there is nobody to monitor who buys what.

What is needed is awareness by parents and older siblings. Yes, mama should always know best! Says, Rima Agarwal, mother two children, aged 13 and 11, quot;I think CDs are helpful if they have educative contents like encyclopedias. Violent games are to be discouraged.quot; However, there are a number of parents who are unaware of the ill-effects of these sort of games. For them, it is enough that their children are using computers8217; and are hip8217;. Teachers, who play a dominant role must be educated to caution the parent on the undesirable influences of such games.

Though the use of computers is widespread today, it is still only an increase in usage as compared to the past. Most of the school going children do not have access to computers. This is due to the expense involved in buying a computer, buying CDs or other such software. Even for those can afford it, CDs are expensive, but there are a number of them available in the Rs 500-1000 range.

Sooner or later, however, the influence of computers will become bigger and bigger and a time will come for re-addressing the question as to what will be done about the rise of undesirable games and modes of entertainment. Till then, the world of informative CDs is still a far way concept in many areas.

Meanwhile, the good old book is still the preferred mode of exploration, even amongst children who do have computers at home. Remember how a new book feels in your hand? And how nice it is to just smell those pages? You can carry a book anywhere too. Well, lets hope you have all learnt the value of a good book!

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